Tales of the Masks

Bionicle Chronicles #4

by Greg Farshtey

Six heroes. New challenges. One destiny.

The legend continues with books based on BIONICLE, the first-ever, best-selling LEGO action figure.

The Toa have acquired new armor, new tools, new powers and a new name: Toa Nuva. But these new abilities do not mean that their mission is finished. They must still defeat Makuta. To do this, they will need to find six new masks. Known as the Kanohi Nuva, these are the most powerful of all the Masks of Power. The quest will not be easy. Makuta and his forces will try to stop them at every turn, but the Toa Nuva must succeed if they are to save the island of Mata Nui.

These are the stories behind the legends. The stories of how the Toa Nuva found the Kanohi Nuva.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Childrens, Chapter Books, Science Fiction, Action, Adventure

96 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 2003

About the author

Greg Farshtey is the author of the popular BIONICLE chapter books and Level 3 readers, as well as the long-running BIONICLE comic book series. His day job is Editor-in-Chief and head writer for the LEGO Club Magazine and the LEGO BrickMaster Magazine.

Greg has been writing since fourth grade. After earning a degree in Communications from the State University of New York at Geneseo, he worked as a reporter, sports editor, game designer and editor, and copywriter before joining LEGO Company in 2000. Before becoming involved with BIONICLE, he wrote game material for such diverse properties as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Tales From the Crypt.

Greg is the author of more than 30 novels and guidebooks, as well as the author or co-author of more than 35 game sourcebooks and adventures.

He lives in West Hartford, Connecticut.

For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greg_Far...

Reviews

[Carmen · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is more of the same for the series. Children may like it, but I find it difficult to enjoy as an adult reader. Every other word is Polynesian. The 'characters' are one-dimensional, flat props. It's hard to understand what exactly is going on.

R.L. Stine is better. I would read a child Goosebumps over this any day of the week. But for children with a weakness for Bionicles, this might appeal.

[Leonardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good children’s book. Greg knows these characters and he knows how the world works. This was an excellent way to debut himself with the Bionicle chapter books. The characters that have been in the background— the Turaga— are now brought to the fore and granted a mysterious past which gives the stories they tell tension. Since this was published in December of 2003, readers would’ve been familiar with Turaga Vakama’s statement at the end of the previous month’s Bionicle comic that the Toa Nuva were not the first Toa. This rolls with that and drops hints as to who those could’ve been and prepares us for the two years of flashbacks to come. The Toa also get further development as a team as each story details the quests for the Kanohi Nuva and their unification on the eve of the Mask of Light’s discovery. Most excellent.

[Adelaide Metzger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, this is the first introduction to the writer Greg Farshtey in the BIONICLE series, and I say the truth when I claim he is the best person to craft a story around the mysterious Turaga. Just wait till you hit the Adventures. In this novel, the Turaga of Mata Nui gather privately to discuss a vexing matter that haunts all six of them. The book is laid out in a series of short stories: Individual tales that the Turaga tell each other in order to solve the wisdom and trust of the Toa Nuva.
This is also the first time we, the readers, learn that the Turaga are actually hiding something and get a taste of the Turaga's relationships with one another. It's absolutely adorable because they all "grew up" together and still have affection toward the others. However, a darkness of memory keeps them on edge as they argue and share their ideas of what to tell the Toa Nuva.
Now, if you've read the first three, or any of the BIONICLE books, you might have noticed that even though they are supposed to be robotic life forms of mechanical components, they still are in danger of getting "broken bones" and of drowning. In this book, there is also mention of them being able to eat and drink just like us--which is awesome, because they are bionic beings. Later in the series, there is smattered mention of the Toa's and Matoran having "organic" parts and that the external metal we see on the characters is just armor.
This book is just the beginning of secrets and shadows. All the Turaga's secrets will be revealed when Greg Farshtey returns.

[jessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

turaga sleepover gossip the novel. it's perfect.
also nokama said gaslight gatekeep girlboss literally

[J.B. Mathias · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was better written than all the others in this series, which makes sense because it was written by the guy who wrote the Bionicle comics. The character depth was there more, and there was more of a connection to the story in the movie and the comics. However I didn't like it as much because it felt like an unnecessary filler story. The plot jumps back somewhat to the time where the Toa are without their powers and the Bohrok Kal are on the loose. The least interesting part of the Bionicle early adventures was them hunting for the masks, it was a plot device that was obviously just about selling more Lego products, and the fact that they were doing it without their powers made it even less interesting. Well written, but there was nothing new or interesting happening here.

[Sully Leier · Rating 3 out of 5]

tthe framing device of the Turaga meeting and discussing the adventures of their village's respective Toa is really cool. I also love how the Metru-nui storyline is foreshadowed and how the individual mask powers are explored in fun situations.

[Darius Mullin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best of the series. Shoutout the “Reading Bionicle” podcast.

[Kevin Regimbal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Epitome of character development.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bionicle Chronicles 4 is an interesting point of view because it is from the Turagaas (elders) point of view in telling the story of the Toa. The only thing that frustrates me was that this was the last book in the Chronicles series, but there is more to this storyline, it's just in the first Bionicle movie. This is annoying because they someone can't get the full story just by reading the books, and if they did just read the books they would be confused because a whole new Toa is introduced in the first movie. In Bionicle Tales of the Masks, the Turaga discuss if they should tell the Toa Nuva about themselves and who they were. The Turaga have a very interesting tale, however I didn't know why they didn't wan to tell the Toa. Although what they reveal is mind blowing to the Toa, there isn't a reason to hide it. This book is about how the Turaga tell stories of the Toa Nuva trying to find yet another set of masks, each Turaga takes a turn and tries to either convince them that the Toa are ready to hear the about the Turaga, and other tell why the Toa aren't ready. However this book's tales fit in perfectly with what I said in my last review, do what Ghali says and stick together. It's so simple yet they never do and then the Toa pay for it. I recommend this series to people from ages 7+. The plot came be a little simple but the world is really fantastic and interesting.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazon Book Description:
The Toa have acquired new armor, new tools, new powers and a new name: Toa Nuva. But these new abilities do not mean that their mission is finished. They must still defeat Makuta. To do this, they will need to find six new masks. Known as the Kanohi Nuva, these are the most powerful of all the Masks of Power. The quest will not be easy. Makuta and his forces will try to stop them at every turn, but the Toa Nuva must succeed if they are to save the island of Mata Nui. These are the stories behind the legends. The stories of how the Toa Nuva found the Kanohi Nuva.

[Jerome Otte · Rating 4 out of 5]

A more interesting addition to the series since most of it is told from the Turaga’s point of view, who are attempting to hide their past from the Toa but are now split on whether or not to finally reveal it.

[Guinee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of all Chronicles, this is the best. Although Hapka can write good stories, Greg has something that makes you a part of the story as you read it. The more pages you've read, the less you want to reach the end.

[Olive · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite being anecdotal, this book pulls together seemingly random stories into a beautiful whole in a way that truly represents the third virtue: Unity. Greg Farshtey proves himself just as good a writer as a story designer.

[Ivan Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

nothing

[Cg School · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love this book it is so awesome
it rocks

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favorite series in elementary school

[Fangs Silver · Rating 5 out of 5]

It rules!

[The Children's]

JSF BIO bk.4

[Jennifer]

I have 2 copies